Part of the fun of playing a Star Wars game is being able to get lost in the galaxy far, far away - and potentially turning to the dark side and becoming a Sith Lord. While most games let players be the good guy it's fun to be bad, and for Star Wars games, that usually means being a Sith. Unsurprisingly there aren't a lot of games that will let players unleash their inner dark side, but those that do are a lot of fun.
Sith are supposed to be the complete opposite of the Jedi in Star Wars. Where the Jedi are comionate and peaceful, the Sith are vengeful and conniving. While this has led to all kinds of dire confrontations in-universe, in Star Wars games playing the villain can be interesting, as it allows players to explore a different side to the Star Wars universe usually shown.
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga Includes More Playable Sith Than Any Other Game
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga divides playable characters into different classes, and one of those is called the dark side. Well-known Sith such as Palpatine, Count Dooku, Maul, and Vader are available to players to take on missions. With abilities like Force Crush, Dark Rise, and Power Push, it can be a lot of fun to play as a Sith in LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga.
Both Versions Of Battlefront 2 Boasted Sith Characters
Battlefront 2 - both the 2005 and 2017 versions - allowed players to choose from a variety of famous Sith characters to play as. Darth Maul, Vader, and even Emperor Palpatine are playable in each Battlefront 2. In 2005's Battlefront 2, players could play the Rise of the Empire campaign, which showed the 501st clone troopers from the Clone Wars to the Battle of Hoth. During the campaign, players could play as Vader and Palpatine during key moments of the story. Palpatine and Vader are easily two of the most powerful characters on offer in the 2017 Battlefront 2, with Count Dooku and Kylo Ren also boasting some awesome dark side powers.
Star Wars: Jedi Knight Let Kyle Katarn Use Dark Side Force Powers
The Star Wars: Jedi Knight series followed former Imperial officer turned Rebel Kyle Katarn as he grew his connection to the Force. The first game in the series - the non-canon Star Wars: Dark Forces - had Katarn as a simple mercenary. However, the sequels introduced Force abilities and thus the temptation of the dark side. While the third installment Star Wars Jedi Knight 2: Jedi Outcast, forced Katarn back into the role of a Jedi, it was possible for him to technically be a Sith in the preceding game.
Star Wars Jedi Knight: Dark Forces 2 grouped Force powers into three categories: light, dark, and neutral, and as such, Katarn's alignment was linked to which powers the player chose to use. However, the dark side powers, such as throwing objects or people or choking enemies, were very useful and powerful, meaning it was easy to technically turn Katarn into a Sith. In keeping with player choices, there was a light and dark side ending to Dark Forces 2, with the dark side ending of the Star Wars game showing Katarn claiming the power of the Valley of the Jedi for himself, becoming the new Emperor of the reforming Empire.
Players Could Fall To The Dark Side In Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy
In Star Wars: Jedi Academy, players obviously play as a Jedi. However, that doesn't mean that they can't turn to the dark side. Jedi Academy allowed players to customize their character, giving them the choice of many different Force abilities, some of which were decidedly from the dark side. Over the course of the story, the player character, Jaden Korr, grows more powerful, and has to choose what kind of Force powers - belonging to both the light and dark side - to invest in.
The dark side abilities are stronger and easier to get, in turn making the game a little easier than if a player sticks with being a perfect Jedi. It was because of this that Jedi Academy captured the dark side's lure perfectly. It is the easy path, a slippery slope, and a conscious decision a Force makes. Jedi Academy also included a dark side ending.
The Force Unleashed’s Starkiller Starts Out As Darth Vader's Secret Sith Apprentice
Released in 2008, Star Wars: The Force Unleashed put players in the shoes of Darth Vader's secret apprentice. As Starkiller, players had tons of Sith abilities such as Force lightning, impale, and the classic Force choke. Players are sent by Vader on missions to hunt down Jedi, until eventually his deception is discovered by the Emperor and Starkiller embarks on a journey to rediscover his Jedi heritage.
Throughout the game, players must balance Starkiller's connection to both sides of the Force. This goes towards making the first Star Wars: The Force Unleashed game's story so good as players are put in a unique position where they can move towards the light or be as dark as they want. The Force Unleashed is a brilliantly twisted game to let players embrace the dark side.
Player Choice Could Lead To The Dark Side In Both KOTOR Games
Both Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and its sequel, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords, allow players to turn to the dark side. Both Knights of the Old Republic games are set almost 4000 years before the main Star Wars saga at a time when the Sith were as plentiful as Jedi. Long before Darth Bane created the rule of two, the Sith had their own Empire.
Knights of the Old Republic follows fallen Star Wars Jedi-turned-Sith Revan as they regain their memories. As Revan has been on both sides of the Force, players can choose what type of Force they will become again, with light and dark side endings for the game depending on choices made throughout the intricate storyline.
In Knights of the Old Republic 2, players start as a former Jedi Knight known only as the Exile. However, players can choose to follow a darker path. Just like its predecessor, KOTOR 2 offers players choices throughout the game to determine their Force alignment. However, unlike KOTOR, the writing for KOTOR 2 was much more subtle, leading to a more nuanced view of the Force.
In both games, Sith Lord abilities are powerful, giving Star Wars players plenty of incentive to at least try them. Both games also implement complex morality systems which alter where on a scale of light to dark, the player character falls. The Knights of the Old Republic series is a great look at the Force from perspectives other than that of the Jedi.
Star Wars: The Old Republic Offers The Best Sith Experience
Star Wars: The Old Republic is the MMO sequel to the Knights of the Old Republic series taking place 300 years after the events of the two RPGs. SWTOR is one of the best looks at how it would actually be to be a Sith, with players able to choose from two Sith classes. Players who choose to align themselves with the Sith Empire can play as either Sith Warriors or Sith Inquisitors, with both classes having different abilities.
Each Star Wars: The Old Republic class has its own storyline, and the two Sith questlines are some of the best in SWTOR. While the Sith Warrior finds themselves as the apprentice to a manipulative Darth, the Sith Inquisitor faces betrayal time and time again. Both stories do a great job of showing just how hard it is to navigate Sith politics and how messed up the dark side of the Force really is.
However, for players wishing to choose the Republic, they can still play as a dark-side Force . The alignment system in Star Wars: The Old Republic works similarly to the Knights of the Old Republic, where key choices determine a character's alignment. Making bad, cruel, or downright evil choices as a Jedi in this Star Wars game will result in a dark side Force who is Sith in all but name.
Source: Nintendo of America/YouTube
